The footage contained within this collection are film clips from Parade of Progress of Colored Atlanta commissioned by Eugene M. Martin (1888-1969) and produced by J. Richardson Jones (c. 1901-1948). "Eugene M. Martin, the Executive Secretary of Atlanta Life Insurance, commissioned Jones to produce a newsreel advertising the black-owned company to prospective employees and clients." In 1939, the newsreel premiered in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1942, Jones produced a two-hour sequel featuring successful African-Americans in the United States. Jones also wrote for the Atlanta Daily World and other African-American periodicals.

The footage documents a variety of activities including sporting events, homecoming, golf, motorcycle racing, occupational activities, and baseball. Included in the footage is the Atlanta Black Crackers baseball team playing a game at Ponce De Leon Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Some of the footage depicts African-Americans engaged in white-collar professions such as secretaries, newspaper printers, cashiers, and bookkeepers. There is also a small section of film with audio, reporting the return of A.L. Richardson, President of the Afro-American Life Insurance Company, from the "Holy Land."